Entrepreneurs have an important new way to raise money. Crowdfunding pools money from a group of people via the internet and social media. It levels the playing field for anyone raising and investing money, but its impact may be the greatest on under-represented groups, such as women and minorities.

“Women have been significantly underrepresented in the capital markets, so any new approach that promises to address this disparity and shift the trajectory toward a more balanced participation is very exciting,” said Brenda Bazan, co-founder of MoolaHoop, a rewards-based crowdfunding platform for women business owners.